Bulletproof
by takeONEstep4ward
Summary: Stella has been known as "bulletproof". Yet, she is not a hitman for the Vongola; she is the 9th's maid/important task do-er. Thus, one day, is sent to the Varia to watch over them and be the maid. There, her being "bulletproof" is tested, her heart too.
1. Preface

_I know, I know, I know that I have another KHR story to worry about, but I couldn't help wanting to at least post the first part of this story that I've had swimming inside my head. It is the preface of my new KHR/Xanxus story. It will be a XanxusxOC story, don't like, don't read. Anyway, I hope you enjoy—tell me what you think—and please, check out my GokuderaxOC story called Tempesta di Neve. Thank you. Please review._

_**Disclaimer:**__** I do NOT own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or its characters. They rightfully belong to Amano Akira-sensei. All I own is some plot points and my OCs.**_

_**Warning:**__** This story contains lots of swearing, alcohol and drug references, gore, violence, mild sexual content, and blah, blah, blah. It is XanxusxOC story. Anything in Japanese and Italian will be translated after the chapter.**_

* * *

**BULLETPROOF**

**Preface:**

Every single one of her muscles trembled shaking her tiny and frail thirteen-year-old body. Platinum locks and a white nightgown stuck uncomfortably to her, blood and sweat being the reason; she was covered in it—though, none of the blood was hers. Four motionless bodies laid all around her staining the living room floor in dark and thick crimson. That red liquid was like a never-ending pool.

The echoing and eerie sound of footsteps approaching caused the young teen to lift her head. Her glassy and blue eyes widened fearfully at the figure moving towards her. She backed up further against the wall, accidentally knocking down the family portrait from the wall, the glass protecting it shattering upon contact. The figure cackled at his prey and lifted his weapon causing the gun to shine a little because of the moonlight shining into the darkened house.

The predator cocked his gun and aimed for her. Biting her lip, she slammed her eyes shot when she heard the gunshot. A bloodcurdling scream escaped her lips as hot white pain came from the left side of her chest.

Her body met the ground with a dull 'THUD'. Footsteps of her shooter faded as she felt conscious start to do so for her.

Her head lolled to the side and her partially lidded optics caught side of the picture frame she had broken. A stray tear escaped seeing the smiling faces of her now deceased family—her smiling alongside them.

As blackness started to consume her, a meek smile pulled at the corners of her lips. Maybe dying wasn't so bad, she'd be with her family again and they were the only things in her life that she considered living for.

Nevertheless, when the girl woke up in a hospital hours later and was told that the bullet that should've pierced her heart barely past her ribs, she wasn't sure whether she was grateful or regretful that she was—jokingly--being called "bulletproof".


	2. Target: One

_Well, here's chapter one, peoples! Thanks to those who viewed the preface! Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. I apologize ahead of time on the shortness, but if I wrote more, it would overlap too much with the next chapter. Please, enjoy and please, REVIEW!!! As well, please check out my other KHR story if you're a Gokudera fan called Tempesta di Neve._

_**Disclaimer:**__** I do NOT own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or its characters. They are rightfully owned by Amano Akira-sensei. All I own is a few plot points and my OCs.**_

_**Warning:**__** This is a XanxusxOC story; don't like, don't read. This story will be following the manga—nothing against the anime. This contains lots of swearing, alcohol and drug references, violence, gore, mild sexual content, and blah, blah, blah. Anything in Italian and Japanese will be translated after the chapter.**_

* * *

**BULLETPROOF**

**Target: One**

Very few—meaning maybe one or two people—knew why Stella de Luca had become a maid for the Vongola Famiglia instead of becoming a mafioso. She had the right attitude to be one. Most maids weren't as crude, hotheaded, sarcastic, and foulmouthed as she was. Not to mention, Stella had gone through the proper training to be a hit-man. So it was a huge question mark in many of the minds in the Vongola on why the light-haired twenty-year-old was just a cleaning and errand lady for the Ninth.

However, no one had the courage to ask her such a question.

At least not anymore because when people had, Stella—one to always have such a silver tongue—would exasperatedly retort: "What the fuck do you care? I clean your shit up and do the bitch work. Isn't that enough for you? Fuck off."

No one bothered to ask her her intentions anymore nor did anyone question why the Ninth counted on the female so much to do the oddest and—maybe--some of the toughest of tasks.

Today was no exception when word quickly got around that the Ninth was ordering the young maid to do a task of the highest importance. No one knew what the task was. Not even Stella knew.

Then again, she didn't even know that the Vongola Boss was summoning her until she heard a couple of her maid co-workers whispering to themselves about it. Though, she wasn't surprised at all when Sawada Iemitsu, the Ninth's External Adviser, approached her while she was dusting the establishment's heirlooms.

"Stella," the gruff, but kind fair-haired man said. "The Ninth wishes to see you."

She scoffed. "You're a little late, Iemitsu. Everyone but you and the Boss himself has told me he wants me." When, his brows furrowed puzzled, Stella rolled her sky-blue irises and sighed placed her duster aside. "Let's just say word spreads like wildfire around here yet, never mind that. Lead the way." Speaking dryly, she motioned languidly with her pale hand for her companion to guide her to the Ninth.

Just shrugging, the Japanese male turned and started to lead the other blonde through the various hallways of the large establishment. As they walked, Iemitsu went through the normal protocol on how to behave in front of the Ninth to Stella, who listened—sort of—with a look of boredom on her face.

"Iemitsu, _enough_," she finally said in exasperation as they reached the Ninth's office. The young woman turned to him, her hands placed firmly on her hips. "I'm not fifteen anymore. I am _more_ than aware on how to behave in front of the Boss. I've lived here and served him long enough to have the protocol memorized."

The suit male arched a brow and gave her a skeptical look as he crossed his arms. "You say that, but I can't count how many times the Ninth tells me that you talk back to him." he pointed out, looking down at her patronizingly.

A rush of blood flooded to her cheeks as she scoffed and turned her head. "I don't talk back, I just give my opinion." she mumbled.

"What's the difference?"

"...The wording."

Sighing deeply, he shook his head, but with a small smile on his scruffy face. Despite her usual bad attitude, Stella was a good kid. A little awkward and crude, but good—she just wasn't exactly a people person.

"Just go inside and _please,_ behave, Stells." Iemitsu told her.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Stella grumbled, turning around and starting to head inside the office as she opened the door. "And don't call me Stells. I'm not a child." With that, she closed the door behind her tiny frame.

Chuckling, with another shake of his head, the father leaned against the wall near the door and made himself comfortable.

He knew, knowing Stella and the Ninth together, that he'd be waiting for a while until the female came out. He was used to the said scenario by now since Stella—though not a hitman—was an important person to the Boss of the Vongola and did very important tasks for him—like being a translating, shopping, secrets of the family, and so on—that no other maid would be permitted to do.

Though, despite the fact that Iemitsu was used to waiting for Stella after she received an order from the Ninth, he was quite startled when her heard feminine shouts that were muffled from inside and a masculine and elderly voice spoke back in a much gentler tone. With widened eyes, Iemitsu stared at the door. Never had he ever heard Stella actually yell at the Boss—protested and shared her "opinion", but never yelled.

_What the hell is going on in there?,_ he wondered worriedly.

Eventually, Stella marched out the office and slammed the door behind her. Her head was hung, so her flaxen bangs-them being the largest parts of her tresses—was hanging in her face, shadowing her expression from him. Her body was tensed; her shoulders hunched slightly and her fists clenched at her sides.

"Stella," the Ninth's External Adviser called hesitantly. "What's the matter?"

"...I-I have to pack." she mumbled, her head still hung.

"Pack? What for?"

"I was...I was ordered...to watch over the...the Varia..."

Iemitsu took aback at the announcement. "Wha-What?"

Stella looked up at him with a grave expression, her complexion paler than usual. "I-I leave tomorrow morning..."

After that, neither adult said a word. Then, again, neither of them could, not knowing what to say.

Stella...leaving...to watch the Varia...? Why...?


	3. Target: Two

_Okidokie, here's chapter two. I hope you guys enjoy. I apologize that it's another short one; they may be like that for a while considering that I'm basically running with story in various directions. Anyway, hope you enjoy and thanks to everyone who has reviewed and favored this story so far—please keep it up. _

_**Disclaimer:**__** I do NOT own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or its characters. They rightfully belong to Amano Akira-sensei. All I own is some plot points and my OCs.**_

_**Warning:**__** This is a XanxusxOC story, don't like don't read. It will be following the manga—nothing against the anime. The story contains swearing, alcohol and drug references, mild sexual content, violence, gore, and blah, blah, blah. Anything in Italian or Japanese will be translated after the chapter.**_

* * *

**BULLETPROOF**

**Target: Two**

Iemitsu knew Stella was never really one to hide her emotions. If the blonde was angry, she'd show her rage. If she was happy, there'd be a big smirk/smile on her almost alabaster face. If she was frustrated, she'd scowl. And so on so forth. Probably the only emotion she rarely showed was sadness, but it was a rare occasion when she was upset. Either way, since the Asian male had known the young adult for quite a few years now, he was getting very good at reading her.

That being, the Ninth's External Adviser could tell how anxious and exasperated Stella was just by her body language as they sat outside of the Vongola main mansion's front steps. There was deep frown tugging at her cherry lips to show her irritation probably waiting for so long for her ride to arrive. As for her anxiety, that was shown by the fact that her slender leg bouncing up and down furiously, which was a result of her worrying about her new living situation and mission.

He couldn't blame her. If the Ninth had assigned him such a thing, he'd be a bit fidgety too. However, for a hitman like himself, watching over the Varia was understandable. For a maid like Stella, though not the most orthodox maid, a task of that caliber was peculiar and not exactly within her training range.

Why had the Boss assigned her such a task? Iemitsu still had no idea and was a bit hesitant to ask Stella. Nevertheless, watching her behave such a manner, the gentleman's curiosity and concern got the better of him.

He placed a fatherly hand on her shoulder. He frowned when she stiffened a little yet, asked his question nonetheless, "Stella, are you...ready to talk about it?"

Her blue eyes—now darkened to a stormy blue because of her frustration—turned to him slowly. Then, she sighed deeply and gazed at the front courtyard at the horizon still not seeing a single car appear over it—she was fairly grateful that her ride hadn't arrived yet. Stella's frown deepened before she spoke, "Honestly, Iemitsu, I don't know if I can talk about it because my mind hasn't entirely fathomed it."

"Hm?" His eyebrow arched, not entirely understanding.

Shaking her head, Stella sighed again and rested her chin on her fist of the propped up elbow on her knee. "Why me of all people?" she said to herself softly, though Iemitsu overheard.

That question had been haunting her since yesterday. So much so, that the twenty-year-old had barely got any sleep last night. The question between her and the Ninth was still very vivid in her mind.

* * *

_||With her hands tucked into the pockets of her black, slimming hoodie, Stella left Iemitsu and closed the office double doors behind her. Stepping further into the Ninth's office quarters, the woman bowed her head politely before gazing through her platinum blonde bangs at the elderly man sitting at the desk before her. _

"_You summoned me, Nono__**[1]**__?" she asked._

_The mustached and graying man smiled tenderly. It was small, but still tender. With a motion of his finger, he gestured her to step forward. Obediently, Stella moved her booted feet forward causing her long, white gypsy-like skirt to swish around her legs. _

"_How are you today, mio caro__**[2]**__?" the Vongola boss asked kindly, folding his hands on top of his desk._

_The old man knew Stella had a lot rough edges, especially for someone her age, but he adored her. Through it all, she was a goodhearted woman, who was just a little lonely and confused. She was very loyal to him and did whatever task he gave her with great succession. Sure, she complained, but she did her work well. He thought of her like a granddaughter and trusted her, having great faith that she could do anything he asked of her. That is why he summoned her today for the important mission he was going to assign her. _

"_I am fine, grazie, Nono." she replied._

"_Good, good." he nodded. "Now, I have a very important task for you, Stella."_

_Stella nodded. "I will do my best with whatever you request of me, sir."_

"_I have no down about that." the Ninth grinned. He exhaled deeply, his expression turning serious. "Now, do you know of the Varia?"_

_Crossing her arms over her chest, Stella's gazed up at the ceiling as she went through her mental file system of what she knew of the Varia. Eventually, she said, "The Varia is the Vongola Family's elite, independent assassination team. They are composed of genius assassins who work in the deepest recesses of the Mafia. Each member takes on missions that are said to be impossible to accomplish by humans, however, they do not accept a mission unless they believe there is a 90% chance of success. Those that see them work often say that their high level assassination skills are demonic." _

_Naturally, Stella had heard of the Varia and its members. Who hadn't? People told stories about them as if they were all the Boogieman, Freddy, Jason, Jack the Ripper, and whatever murderer/monster one could think of. Even Stella was a bit wary of them._

_The Ninth smiled just the tiniest bit. Stella didn't act like it or even give such an aura, but she was a genius with a flawless memory. "Very good."_

"_Grazie__**[3]**__, Nono. So what about them?"_

"_I am going to need someone to watch over them for a while. Maybe even possibly clean up after them, cook for them, do their laundry, and so on. And--"_

"_Whoa, whoa, wait a minute, Nono." she cut him off. He looked to her a bit surprised. She appeared aghast. "Please, tell me you're not saying what I think you're saying."_

_He remained calm. "What do you suppose I'm saying, Stella?"_

"_I think you're asking me to be a maid and a caretaker for the __**Varia.**__"_

"_You always were a quick one."_

_Her jaw dropped as she blanched. She stepped forward. "Nono, you can't be serious!"_

"_Stella," the Ninth began gently._

"_Nono! I'm just a simple maid! There is no way I can care for a bunch of assassins!" she protested frantically._

"_Stella," he started again, but in a firmer tone. That time, she silenced, biting down on her bottom lip and her fists clenched at her sides in order to restrain herself from saying anything else. "You and I both know that you are __**not**__ a simple maid."_

"_I'm not a hitman either." _

"_I am aware, but you have the makings to be one."_

"_...No, I don't." the blonde muttered, turning her head away._

"_Stella," the Ninth scolded. She just scowled, keeping her eyes adverted, glaring at the right wall. "Just because you have a condition doesn't make you incapable."_

"_Only incapable of being a hitman."_

"_Only you can do this, mio caro. No one else."_

_In the corner of her light hue, Stella glanced to the kind male. "...Why?"_

"_Because I believe in you." the Mafioso claimed._

_A light blush painted her cheeks, but she stated bluntly, "I appreciate that, Nono, but I'm going to need a little more than that."_

_The gentleman couldn't help the small chuckle emitting from him. His expression became serious once more, but softer than earlier. "Stella, you may work as a maid, but, to me, you are more than that. You take on tasks that I'd never ask of any my other maids or even some of my hitman. Concerning this case, no maid could handle the difficulty of it and I cannot ask any of the hitman for the Vongola to deal with such. However, I needed someone who can watch over them and care for them like a maid would yet, had the skills of an assassin if need be. Thus, you are the only candidate. You have all of the qualifications of both. No one else, but you can do this." he explained logically._

"_...But why the Varia? Why do they need to be watched?" Stella questioned, facing him completely._

_He frowned and looked down at his wrinkled, but skilled hands. "...I have a bad feeling."_

_Her brows furrowed. "A bad feeling, sir?"_

"_I can't exactly explain it, but I have a feeling they may do something."_

"_Like...a betrayal?"_

"_...Possibly."_

"_..."||_

* * *

"So the Ninth has a bad feeling?" Iemitsu reluctantly said after Stella finished telling him her story.

Stiffly, she nodded and sighed, leaning back on her elbows on the steps. "Yep. Unfortunately, he has idea what they could be planning. He's hoping that with me there, they won't get the chance to do anything. I don't know _how_ he thinks I'm going to be able to do that."

"Do _you_ know what you're going to do?" the Japanese male asked, glancing down at her.

She scoffed. "Fuck if I know. " Groaning, she rested her head back and closed her eyes. "I guess I'll just do my job as I always do it. I mean, I just gotta watch over them, clean after them, do their laundry, cook for them, and etc. How hard can that be?"

He smiled a little. "You'll do fine."

"Yeah. Maybe." A snort of laughter came from her nose. "Hey, Iemitsu?"

"Hm?"

"In the navy safe in my room, there's a full bottle of _Columbia Crest _wine from 2005 stashed there."

"...Yeah?"

"It's yours."

"Why?"

As a sleek, black car pulled up, Stella rose and gathered her various bags in her arms. She descended the steps towards the parked vehicle. "It's yours in case I get massacred by a bunch of psychos." she stated dryly.

Not knowing whether she was joking or not, Iemitsu just laughed awkwardly and said, "Be careful, Stells."

"I will," she said, loading her bags—with the help of the driver—into the trunk. "And don't call me Stells, I'm not a child."

He smiled. "Addio, Stella. Si riguardi.**[4]**" he told her gently.

"Tu pure.**[5]**" she smiled back and then, slid into the car. The driver closed the door behind her before proceeding into the driver's seat.

With that, the car drove off. Iemitsu watched it go until it was completely gone. He frowned, his hands tucked his slacks' pockets. _Come back, Stella._

* * *

**1. Nono—**_**Ninth**_

**2. Mio caro—**_**My dear**_

**3. Grazie—**_**Thank you**_

**4. Addio, Stella. Si riguardi—**_**Goodbye, Stella. Take care.**_

**5. Tu pure—**_**You as well.**_

**_Thank you~! Please REVIEW!_**


	4. Target: Three

_I'm not entirely happy with this chapter, but it's better than nothing. Some interesting Lussaria and Stella interaction! Thank you to everyone who supported me so far—please keep it up! Anyway, I hope you enjoy and if you do, PLEASE REVIEW!_

_**Disclaimer:**__** I do NOY Katekyo Hitman Reborn or its characters. All of the rights belong entirely to Amano Akira-sensei—kudos! All I own is some plot points and my OCS.**_

_**Warning:**__** The story is a Xanxus/OC story, don't like, don't read. It will be following the manga—nothing against the anime. This story contains swearing, alcohol and drug references, violence, gore, mild sexual content, and blah, blah, blah. Anything in Japanese or Italian will be translated after the chapter.**_

* * *

**BULLETPROOF**

**Target: Three**

To say that Stella's first week living under the Varia mansion roof was interesting would've been a total understatement. If asked, the blonde woman would've said that it was like Hell and a very strange one at that.

At first, she thought that living with the Varia would've been fine since they barely questioned why she was being ordered to live there, they seemed like they didn't mind having a maid. Sure, they weren't the most welcoming bunch, especially when she asked where her room was, everyone kind of ignored it and walked away—Lussaria was the only kind enough to show her the spare room. She had also found it difficult to gather everyone for lunch, but otherwise, Stella figured that her new living situation wouldn't be so bad.

Nonetheless, her thoughts changed severely as the day went on...

After lunch, Stella decided to clean the mansion since it was a complete and total disaster—it was disgusting and she was quite OCD. The kitchen, the den, the training room, the dining room, the living room, the bathrooms, and the hallways took her a while, but eventually she reached the boys' rooms and well...that's where problems ensued.

Mammon, who was a toddler, much to Stella's surprise, didn't care if she cleaned his room as long as she didn't touch his money. Now, that was fine, but the main problem was that his money was _everywhere._ He had stack loads of money.

Levi, a gentleman very loyal to the Varia's boss, wasn't a problem at all, neither was Lussaria, a flamboyant fellow. Though, their rooms creeped her out. Leviathan seemed to have a weird obsession with umbrellas so they were everywhere. Lussaria's room was so incredibly..._vibrant—_Stella could not think of any other way to describe the eccentric male's room.

Then, there came Squalo, an extremely loud and hotheaded swordsman. His room was okay and he didn't care about the blonde cleaning all that much. However, when she accidentally knocked down—causing a domino-like effect—all of his swords of different styles and sizes, the silverette freaked out, throwing her out of his room quite forcefully.

After the Vice Captain of the Varia, there came the blonde and knives-specialist, Belphegor. His room was gorgeous and the cleanest out of everyone's room. Stella was grateful for that since she was becoming exhausted at that point. However, just as she entered the room that quite literally fitted a prince, the blonde sadist tried using Stella for target practice, flinging his precious knives while cackling in a frightening way.

Finally, there was Xanxus' room—he was the leader of the Varia.

Let's just say, that room didn't get cleaned...

Stella still shuddered at the memory of it. Xanxus yelling at her to "Get the fuck out" then, calling "Trash" and throwing an empty shot glass. His anger was scary and his aim was impeccable—he could've hit her if he wanted. The rumors about him had been no lie. Afterward, after catching her breath—she had never ran out of a room so quickly in her life—and allowing her heart to slow down, Stella couldn't help but think shakily, but exasperatedly: _If he didn't want me to clean his room could've just said so._

And that's basically how Stella's first week went. She was surrounded by crazy people, people who kept trying to kill her—or at least wound her—or just ignored her existence completely. If Hell was like that, she started to consider changing her life style. Either that, or Hell was way better than living with the Varia.

Thus, her room—being a nice one at that, but fairly empty since she didn't have many possessions—was her safe haven. And sleep was even more so.

Sadly, over the past few days, she had barely got anything of that.

"VOOOOOOOIIIII! Damn brat! Give it back!"

"_Ushishishi~!_"

"Shut the fuck up, you worthless trash!"

That followed by crashes and loud 'THUD's.

Today, obviously, was no exception...

Groaning, Stella rolled over on her queen-sized bed, snatched up one of her fluffy pillows—there was at least five on the bed—and pulled it over her head. She hoped if she could drown out the noise, maybe it'd go away and she wouldn't have to deal with the psychotic and noisy Varia members or clean up whatever disaster they had created in their wake.

"Stells, darling! You might want to come out and make breakfast before things get worse!" sang Lussaria's voice from behind her bedroom door.

The young maid groaned again and pulled the pillow off her face. She wanted to complain yet, this was part of her job description—the Ninth was counting on her to maintain the Varia. That being, exhaling deeply, Stella pushed her blankets and comforters off her short, but developed body and then, slowly lid out of the bed.

"Stells!" Lussaria called again, knocking at her door once more.

"I'm coming, dammit! Just give me a minute to get dressed! And don't call me Stells!" snapped the girl furiously. She wasn't a morning person and from her alarm clock, it was fairly early in the morning—why in the hell were they all up so early?

"Okay! Better hurry!" the martial-arts master said. His footsteps echoed outside her room and down the hallway, fading away.

Scowling deeply, Stella reluctantly stood and went to her drawers to grab an outfit for the day—she could take a shower later when things "calmed down". She had a feeling it was just going to be one of strange, annoying days—AKA a "normal" day in the Varia mansion.

* * *

Apparently, the fight between Bel and Squalo—fights were not unusual between them—was minor—Stella had witness worse ones between them—and they had managed to only shatter a vase. Once that was taken care of, Stella began breakfast. While doing so, she had discovered that the large fridge was nearly empty.

That meant one thing...

She was going to have to go grocery shopping.

Such a thought made her scowl, especially since she had no idea how much food she was going to need or what those of the Varia liked.

That fact made her scowl even more because that meant she was going to have to ask what everyone wanted and was going to require money from them.

_This should prove to be interesting..._

Somehow or another, with much difficulty, Stella had gathered those of the Varia into the dining room.

Once everyone was seated, Stella nervously cleared her thought and rose from her seat. All eyes were on her, but just barely. "Uh...I-I have gathered you all be-because...because..." Why was it so hard to speak in front of those people? She never had trouble speaking to people—no matter their rank of how scary they were—before. Was she really that scared of them?

Okay, that was a stupid question.

Of course she was scared, especially of the dark-haired and scarred man sitting at the head of the table, who was glowering at her—Squalo was glaring too, but not as harshly.

Stella, anxiously smoothing her light bangs from her pale face and light eyes, bit her lip and tried speaking again. "Be-Because...th-the fridge is empty...wh-which means I-I have to...have to..."

"Spit it out, trash!" shouted Xanxus, having enough of her failure to speak.

"Seriously." added Squalo with a scoff.

Levi and Mammon smirked while Bel snickered in that creepy was that he does, especially when Stella frowned deeply and blushed.

They were getting enjoyment out of her fear and embarrassment. That made her quite annoyed and gave her just enough courage to finally say what she needed to say. "The fridge is empty, so that means I have to go grocery shopping today and since I have no idea what you guys like, I am going to need a list of what you guys want me to buy."

Belphegor smirked. "_Ushishisi!~!_ Was that all? Such a silly thing to get so nervous about." he teased, twirling one of her knives between his fingers.

Making a face, Stella sighed deeply in frustration. "Please, just give me the list of what you want while I go take a shower." With that, she turned and left, ignoring Squalo's exclaiming of "DON"T TELL US WHAT TO DO, YOU DAMN WOMAN!"

All she could think as she headed to one of the large and well-equipped bathrooms was: _Fuck my life..._

* * *

Lussaria, being the only "nice" one, offered to go to the closest grocery store with Stella to help her shop and carry her bags. He also went to show her where the nearest store was. She was more than grateful for that. Mostly because the food lists those of the Varia had given had barely provided the maid with any incentive as to what she specifically needed to buy.

Mammon's list had consisted off: _Nothing expensive. The cheapest food you can find._

Squalo's was: _Any kind of sushi as long as it doesn't have shark in it._

Bel wrote: _Anything fit for royalty. Things with some blood is fine as well._

Levi's: _Whatever the Boss asks for._

Xanxus' contained of and was the most specific: _Wine, whiskey, beef, and steak._

Lussaria didn't give her a list because he was tagging along and wasn't picky about his food as long as it was edible—the things that the members of the Varia cooked were black and tasted horribly.

So there Stella was in a grocery store in Italy, pushing a shopping cart with a slightly irritated expression on her face and Lussaria walking down an aisle beside her. The cart was partially filled with various food and beverages that the spectacled—he constantly wore sunglasses—had helped her pick out.

"So, how do you like living with us, darling?" Lussaria asked out of the blue as he placed a box of _Lucky Charms_ in the cart.

Stella paused in examining a can of tomato soup and slowly turned to look at the green-haired male, her expression was deadpanned. "...Is that a trick question?" she asked dryly.

He laughed. "Oh, come on, Stells! We aren't that bad!"

She sweat dropped. _Is this guy fuckin' serious?_ Just shaking her head, the short girl placed the soup in the cart and pushed it forward, not bothering to reply. Who knows how he'd react? Not only that, how would the others react if he told them what she said? They'd probably kill her.

"We won't kill you." claimed Lussaria as they entered the dairy section.

Furrowing her brows, Stella peered back at him over her slender shoulder. "Is that supposed to comfort me?"

"Hmmm," he hummed then, gave a crooked grin. "Yes. Mostly because we know you're monitoring us for Nono."

She froze. Her eyes widened as her complexion became paler than normal. "H-How did--" she stammered. They weren't supposed to find out, they were only supposed to know she was a maid.

"We're a bunch of genius assassins, sweetheart."

"...R-Right."

He laughed and placed an arm around her shoulders. "Relax, Stells! I just told you we're not going to kill you!"

She frowned, looking up at him. "Why?"

"Well, I don't know about the others, but I find you so Gosh darn adorable!" the male gushed, pinching one of her cheeks. "So what that you're watching over us in case we do something? We have our ways of going under the radar!" Stella scowled and sweat dropped at that. "Besides, in my opinion, we need someone like you around the castle."

"Someone...like...me?" she questioned, her voice contorted a little Lussaria was still tugging at her flushed cheek.

"Someone cute, innocent, goodhearted, and feminine! Do you know how rare that is in the Varia? Well, minus the feminine part." He laughed at his own joke. "You might be a good influence on us."

She scoffed at that, prying herself away from him. Shaking her head, she crabbed a jug of milk. "You're crazy. Just like everyone else there." she muttered. Lussaria just giggled.

_Her_ cute? Innocent? Goodhearted? A good influence? Even if she believed she was any of those things, what difference would it make in the Varia? They were psychotic, brilliant, and killing Mafiosi.


	5. Taget: Four

_Chapter four, kiddies. ^-^ Thanks to everyone who has supported me so far. However, I'd like to see more reviews—just some feedback—because I know people are reading this since this gets favored a lot. It's not hard people, just a few words because authors love to hear from their readers. Anyway, sorry for the complaining. ^-^;; I hope you enjoy this chapter. I seriously hope that no one is OOC—Squalo and Xanxus are a lot harder to write than I first thought. So please enjoy and if you do, PLEASE REVIEW!_

_**Disclaimer:**__** I do NOT own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or its characters. They are rightfully owned by Amano Akira-sensei. All I own is a few plot points and my OCs.**_

_**Warnings:**__** This story is a Xanxus/OC story; don't like, don't read. I will be following the manga—nothing against the anime. The story contains swearing, violence, gore, alcohol and drug references, mild sexual content, and blah, blah, blah. Anything in Italian or Japanese will be translated after he chapter.**_

* * *

**BULLETPROOF**

**Target: Four**

The day finally came.

The day Stella had been dreading the most when she first moved into the Varia castle.

_Laundry day._

It was the copious amount of clothing she was going to have to wash that she fretted the most because he had to wash the laundry of those living at the Vongola headquarters on a weekly basis. So no, it wasn't the quantity of clothing she feared.

It was what could be on the boys' clothing and how she was going to obtain their laundry that made her shudder.

Nevertheless, after placing her basket of laundry in the laundry room in the basement of the mansion, the blonde decided to work her way up from the easiest person to obtain laundry from to the hardest. Thus, she was going to start with Lussaria and then, work her way up to Xanxus—she had how she was going to attempt that.

With a group of stacked laundry baskets tucked underneath her arm, Stella made her way down the _long _hallway to the room of the man she had—shockingly—become fairly friendly with over the past week or so—he seemed the "sane" one in the Varia. Once she reached the door that had "Lussaria" written in lovely script on a plate, the short-stature woman rapped her knuckles of her free hand against it.

Shortly, the tall and eccentric martial-arts specialist appeared at his door after opening it. He smiled upon seeing the blonde maid. "Hey, Stells darling! Buon pomeriggio**[1]**!" he greeted happily.

"Boun pomeriggo, Lussaria." she greeted, but with not as much enthusiasm. She showed him the plastic baskets. "Its laundry day, so--" Stella grabbed one of the baskets and held it out to Lussaria. "--If you don't mind, can you give all your dirty clothes?"

"Ah! Laundry day!" Lussaria beamed and opened the door further, stepping aside a little. "Come on in." he said invitingly, taking the basket from her as she strolled inside the bedroom. He shot a playful look over his shoulder as he went over to his hamper to get his dirty garments. "Bet you're excited to cleaning all our clothes."

"Oh, yeah, _thrilled._" she retorted sarcastically, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm more excited about getting them, especially from Psycho-Prince, Sword-Boy, and Mr. Grouchy Alcoholic."

The male with sunglasses chuckled making her scowl—why did he find her misery funny? "Relax, Stells. You only have to worry about Vice Captain or Boss today."

She arched a brow. "Why? Did Squalo finally kill Bel? And did Xanxus die of alcohol poisoning?"

Lussaria just laughed harder and shook his head while gathering his clothes into his laundry basket. "No, no, no. The Prince is away on a mission and Boss is taking care of business in the next down over."

_Oh...so much for wishful thinking., _Stella sighed deeply.

Suddenly, a full plastic basket of laundry was placed in her free arm before a hand was placed on top of her fair head. She glowered at Lussaria when he started to ruffle her short locks. "Don't worry, sweetheart! Everything be okay! Just have fun with it!"

Stepping back from his hand, Stella snorted. "Yeah, right. Loads of fun." She turned on her heel and started to exit the room. _When Hell freezes over._

"That's the spirit!" Lussaria cheered.

Just shaking her head and rolling her blue eyes, Stella kicked the door shut behind her. She headed to the laundry room to drop of Lussaria's laundry before heading to Mammon's room to gather his clothes.

Today was going to be a _loooooooooong_ day...

* * *

Much to Stella's surprise and relief, obtaining everyone else's laundry proved to be a lot easier than cleaning their rooms. Sure, Squalo had thrown his clothes at her before she could even go inside his room and Bel had—creepily—left a note for her saying that he wanted to play "Hide and Seek" with her when he returned, but otherwise, she didn't face any issues.

Thus, Stella—now in a somewhat cheery mood—made her way to Xanxus' room to pick up his laundry as he was the last person she had to get to. Then, she could get everything washed and hung up to dry before she had to start dinner.

The minute she entered the Varia boss' room her jaw dropped, her eyes widened, and her body twitched.

It was a disaster!

Wrinkled and dirtied clothes were strewn everywhere. Broken glass littered the red carpet, along with empty and partially empty bottles of alcohol. Various papers, files, and books were messily stacked here and there. And so much more marred the probably once elegant room—it was the biggest bedroom in the place. It looked like a tornado whirled threw it...twice.

And Stella being the OCD person she was about cleanliness was desperately trying to control the twitch of her right eye.

"My _God_, this man is a slob. How does he find _anything_?" Stella clicked her tongue, shaking her head.

Deciding that since Xanxus was probably going to gone for a while she would get his dirty clothes, take them to the laundry room, place them and everyone else's in the washing machine, and while they were being washed, she would clean his room. So with that, Stella—her face contorted in disgust the entire time—gathered the gunman's clothes and headed back to the laundry room.

Cleaning Xanxus' room was more of a hassle than Stella first predicted. It was also consuming a lot of her time. She had already washed everyone's clothes and hung them up to dry outside. At this rate, she was barely going to have time to prepare dinner and that was the last thing she wanted: a group of hungry assassins.

The twenty-year-old was currently stacking all of thrown about papers and files about the room and setting them either on the—now—clean mahogany desk in the far corner of the room. She wasn't entirely how to file or stack them except by date issued, so that's how she did. Xanxus could fix them to how ever pleased—God knows he would even if they were filed correctly.

As she was placing things away in one of the bottom draws, a few peculiar looking pieces of paper and a picture frame caught the attention of Stella's robin egg blue eyes. Her eyebrows shot up before furrowing.

She smoothed her light bangs from her light face and knelt down to the draw, placing the papers in her hands on top of the desk. Reaching into the drawer, she drew out the papers and the picture frame. She examined the papers first, placing the photograph on the desk for later.

The first sheet looked like a confirmed payment sheet. It looked complicated and all Stella could make out was the Black Market and that something was bought.

Stella looked through the other papers.

They didn't seem as complicated, but were fairly so. They appeared to be very detailed blueprint drawings of what looked like a giant robot. Stella was very brilliant—not a genius like those of the Varia--and knew the mechanics of most things, even of robots yet, the blueprints of that one were _very_ complicated; she couldn't fathom the majority of equations, gear, mechanisms, and so on so forth. It must've been a brand new technology.

After trying to figure out what all of the papers meant for about ten minutes, Stella gave up. All she had come up with was that apparently Xanxus had purchased some sort of robot—of the latest technology—off the Black Market.

Sighing deeply in frustration and raking a hand through her short, but messy locks, Stella put the papers back in the drawer. She picked up the photographer only to gasp softly.

She had seen this picture before. It was displayed in the Ninth's bedroom on his nightstand. It was a picture of a younger Ninth and Xanxus as a child. Both were smiling—Stella was shocked that Xanxus had been so adorable once and actually had the capable of smiling—and the Vongola boss had a fatherly and caring hand on the dark-haired child. A very tender picture and it always warmed Stella's heart.

However, Xanxus' version of the picture was _quite_ different.

Xanxus was still smiling—a little, but happily—and had his father's hand on his shoulder. Except, the Ninth was roughly ripped out of the photograph.

Stella bit her bottom lip, frowning severely.

_I-I don't understand..._, she thought.

Was Xanxus angry with his father? Had they had some kind of argument that caused a great riff between them? It'd make sense since they never seemed very close, but it was obvious to Stella that her boss loved her son dearly. Was that reciprocated on Xanxus' part? Was that why Xanxus had ripped the Ninth out of the picture? But if the leader of the Varia hated his parent then why didn't he just throw away the picture? Maybe...?

Inwardly groaning, Stella pinched the bridge of her nose as she started to feel a headache coming on. _So many questions...,_ she thought flustered. Clearly, there was more to that alcohol-obsessed, crude-speaking, coldhearted maniac than Stella first thought. She wasn't entirely sure that was a good thing, though, especially if that more were not good things.

What was even worse was that she didn't know if she should tell the Ninth? Were these really things to tell? She didn't even know what they were or what they meant.

_Since when did this all get so complicated?,_ she pondered, her eyes closed.

"The Boss would be fucking pissed if he found you snooping through his shit."

Jumping startled, Stella's eyes snapped opened and she whipped her head around to see none other than Squalo Superbi standing there. He was looming in the doorway with his arms crossed. She paled and gnawed on her bottom lip.

Gathering her courage and swallowing hard, she retorted as calmly as possible, "I wasn't snooping. I was cleaning up his room."

"Sure you were, girlie." Squalo scoffed, strolling into the room. He arched a brow and spoke challengingly, "Did you find anything interesting to tell Nono?"

Stella was silent for a moment and glanced down at the picture frame and blueprints. She sighed deeply and shook her head. "No, I didn't," she announced, putting the items back in the right bottom drawer. Once she did, the maid stood straight and glared at the long-haired young man. "But that doesn't matter does it? You're either gonna kill me or tell Xanxus, so he can kill me, right?"

He scowled. "Ya gotta a lot of nerve speaking to me like that." he growled. She just stared him down.

He searched her eyes. She was definitely a gutsy one. Sure, it was clear that she was wary of everyone there—except maybe of Lussaria—but it was evident that there was more to the girl than everyone first concluded. Like for starters, she was very honest. Like right now, looking at her big doe eyes, she was telling the truth about finding nothing to snitch to the Ninth. He knew exactly what she had found and it was definitely something, so either she was too stupid—something he discovered wasn't likely—or she was too innocent—a shockingly quality to find in the mafia—to realize.

Stella's said innocence saved her—unbeknownst to her.

Squalo sighed, scratching the back of his neck. "...Just get out of here, woman." he muttered.

Her eyebrows shot up in shock. "You're not going to kill me?"

He snorted. "No, don't be stupid. You were just cleaning up Boss' room, right?"

"Um, y-yes?"

"Then, I've got nothing on ya to kill you for or to tell Xanxus about. So just get the hell out. And I'd hurry 'cuz that damn brat Bel returned and he's looking for you. Apparently, you're supposed to be playing "Hide and Seek" with him when he got back."

Her body stiffened. "Shit!" With that, she started to bolt from the room. Yet, she stopped in the doorway and looked back at the silverette swordsman over her shoulder. She bit her lip, blushing very slightly. Hesitantly, she said aloud, "Grazie, Squalo."

Stiffening, Squalo looked at her oddly. No one had thanked him for anything. He wasn't sure how to feel about that. Thus, he scowled and said curtly, "Vooii! Just leave already, dammit!"

Snickering, with a smirk, Stella left. Squalo shook his head.

_The Ninth is crazy for sending someone like her to a place like this._

* * *

As weird as it sounded, Stella _loved_ doing the laundry. Her favorite part of doing the laundry was drying the clothes outside of a lovely day where the sun was shining and a gentle breeze was blowing. It was a gorgeous day in autumn, so today was a perfect to hang the clothes outside.

Everything was dry at that point, so the young woman was in the back and large courtyard taking it all down and folding them neatly into baskets. With every article of clothing she unclasped from the clothesline, she'd bring it to her nose and take big whiffs of the wonderful scent the Fall air had smothered it with.

It wasn't better than when she hung up clothes in the Spring, but the scent was still pleasant and Stella positively _loved_ it.

Just as she had taken down one of her cami's and sniffed it, a gruff voice called out to her, "Oi! Woman! What the fuck do you think you're doing?"

After jumping nearly out of her skin, Stella peered through one of Belphegor's shirts and one of Levi's only to see a tired and an exasperated Xanxus standing there, glowering at her. She sweat dropped and bit her lip nervously yet, said, "Um...wel-welcome back, Xanxus."

"What the fuck are you doing?" the scarred man asked again, growling. "Why in the hell are you sniffing the clothes?"

"O-Oh..." He had caught her doing that? How embarrassing. She chewed on her lip harder, her cheeks becoming flushed. "Uh...w-well...you see...um..."

"Spit it out, trash! I asked you a damn question!" he snapped.

She made a face and sighed. "I like the smell..." she muttered softly.

"What?" Xanxus asked, having not heard what she uttered. He stepped towards her.

"I said I like the smell!" she repeated, louder that time.

"Don't yell at me, trash." he warned making her frown and hug the garment in her arms closer to her chest. "Now, what's so great about the smell of clothes? They just smell like soap." Xanxus scoffed.

"Actually, no." Suddenly, he noticed, her entire face lit. She moved towards him and held out her tank top to him. "If you hang the clothes outside to dry, they don't smell like soap or detergent at all. Since I hung them up outside to dry during the Fall, they smell like leaves, cinnamon, apples, and dried grass. Smell for yourself."

Xanxus shoved her and the clothing away. "Don't be stupid, trash! Who cares about things like that? And don't going shoving things in front of my face!" he spat at her.

Stella scowled and rolled her eyes. She turned her back on him, folded the clothing, and placed it in the basket. "Never mind." _Of course, why would a hotheaded, spoiled brat like Xanxus care about the small things in life? _"Guess my mother and I only appreciate things like this." she grumbled.

She didn't think the Varia boss would have heard, but he had. He arched a brow. "Your mother?" he asked.

Stella glanced back at him quizzically. "Yes, my mother. She was the one who taught me this." Straightening, a dreamy, but solemn look came across her almost alabaster face. "She loved the smell and used to get so excited. Sometimes, so much so, that she'd run into my room and demand I smell it with a huge grin on her face." As she said that, looking out at the courtyard, she smiled a little herself—it was very tiny and sad.

She snapped back to earth when she noticed that Xanxus was staring at her oddly. Jumping, the blonde blushed and cleared her throat. "Uh, n-never mind. Th-Things like th-this must seem silly to you." she stammered embarrassed.

"Yes, it does. Now, get your ass in that kitchen, woman. I'm starving and if I hear any more complaints from those worthless trash, you will be punished." he told her curtly.

"Yes, sir. Right away." _Asshole._

She took down the rest of the clothes, folded them, and placed them into the baskets. With that, she gathered the a few of the heavy baskets into her arms—she'd get the others later—and started past Xanxus, whom she shot a glare at him. He snorted, indicating he wasn't the least bit intimidated. She rolled her eyes and headed back towards the castle.

Xanxus watched her go with a nonchalant expression. Then, he peered to the remaining clothes' baskets.

He picked up one of the folded and clean clothes and lifted it to his nose. The inky-haired male took a deep whiff. Immediately his nose was ensnared by all the smells Stella had mentioned. It truly did smell wonderful.

Xanxus huffed and dumped the garment back in the basket. With that, he turned and headed back inside while muttering, "Stupid trash."

* * *

**1. Buon pomeriggio--****_Good afternoon_**

**_Thanks for reading~! Please, review!_**


	6. Target: Five

_Chapter five! Yays! Thank you to everyone who has supported me thus far—much appreciated. Please keep it up. Much thanks to __**ChinaDang, wingedwriter, **__and __**Rya-chan X Shii-chan**__ for being my biggest supporters. They're the reason why this story is still going because they review. I know others like this story because of the emails I receive, but I'd really like more reviews. If you guys want results, I'd like some too. Anyway, sorry for complaining. I hope you enjoy this chapter; some awesome interaction with Stella and those of the Varia. Enjoy! And please, REVIEW! As well, check out my Gokudera/OC story: Tempesta di Neve._

_**Disclaimer:**__** I do NOT own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or its characters. They rightfully belong to Amano Akira-sensei. All I own is some plot points and my OCs.**_

_**Warning:**__** This a Xanxus/OC story; don't like, don't read. It will be following the manga—nothing against the anime. The story contains swearing, alcohol and drug references, gore, violence, mild sexual content, and blah, blah, blah. Anything in Japanese and Italian will be translated after the chapter.**_

* * *

**BULLETPROOF**

**Target: Five**

A leather gloved hand passed a manila folder to a scarred hand across a desk.

The Vice Captain made a small scowl as his Boss flipped through the contents of the folder with an emotionless face.

"Y'know, Boss," Squalo began, watching Xanxus closely. The Varia boss made a grunt, indicating he was listening but barely. "Little Miss. Blondie is gonna be really pissed if she finds out that you're digging through her life."

Adverting from the documents before him, Xanxus glanced up at his subordinate with his piercing crimson orbs. "Did I ask for your opinion, scum?"

The silverette's expression hardened. "I'm _just_ telling you."

"And you think I care what you say?"

"Why are you even researching her anyway?"

With a growl, the dark-haired man slammed the file down on his desk. "I don't think that's any of your business."

"Well, I don't think _her _business is any of _yours_." the long-haired fellow snapped, his grayish optics flashing just as dangerously.

"Why are you so protective of her?" hissed Xanxus, his eyes narrowing.

Over the past few weeks that the blonde maid had started living with them, he started to notice that his subordinates were becoming fairly attached to her. Sure, it was clear that they enjoyed annoying her incessantly, especially Squalo and Belphegor, but it was becoming apparent that they enjoyed _her_ as well. And for some reason, that really ticked Xanxus off. What was so great about that tiny worthless brat?

"Why are _you _so interested in _her_?" Squalo retorted, crossing his arms. He smirked when he saw something flash in her superior's eyes.

Oh, yes, he had noticed how—unbeknownst to the man and the girl themselves—Xanxus would watch Stella when she was around. Squalo noticed how Xanxus treated Stella the worse yet, didn't throw shot glasses or empty bottles at her nor did he call her trash or scum. The swordsman thought it was all in his head, but Bel and Lussaria had noticed all that as well. Not to mention, Stella seemed less afraid of the Varia Boss nowadays—she was still terrified, but not as much. Squalo was finally tipped off that Xanxus had some sort of strange fascination with Stella when the alcoholic ordered his 2nd in Command to retrieve files on the short maid and her family.

The sudden painful impact of something hard colliding with his temples and then, shattering followed by warm liquid trickling down his face brought Squalo back from his thoughts.

He glowered at Xanxus as that had been perpetrator that had caused the new—but familiar—injury that was now bleeding. Xanxus just scoffed and returned his attention to Stella's files. "Now, get the fuck out, trash. And while you're at it, get me a new bottle of whiskey." he gruffly demanded dismissively.

Gritting his teeth, Squalo clenched his fist at his side. Nevertheless, with the inaudible and angry muttering of "Bastard" under his breath, the young man trudged out of Xanxus' office, blood continuing to trickle down from the gash on his forehead.

* * *

"Bel! Please, make yourself useful and help me and the others carry these groceries!" Stella cried to the other blonde, who was already making his way to the Varia Castle entrance. Mammon, Levi, Lussaria, and Stella were all exiting the large, black car that they had taken to the grocery store.

If Stella hated grocery shopping for a bunch of mad assassins, she hated grocery shopping for a bunch of mad assassins _with _those said mad assassins more. She had _no_ idea why she agreed to let them come along. Yeah, sure, Xanxus had ordered her to take them because he needed peace and quiet to do some work and she liked the idea of having more hands to help her carry the bags, but she had regretted the minute they stepped into the store.

The fair-haired female had always thought that when it came to the Varia, she was more of a babysitter than a maid. Well, those thoughts just deepened in the grocery store.

Mammon kept saying that everyone was spending too much money and that had to purchase the cheapest things while complaining that he had to sit in the baby-seat of the shopping cart—okay, so that was Stella's idea just for shits-and-giggles. Levi kept worrying about Xanxus would like and voiced his worries aloud—over and over and over. Bel kept running about the store, demanding that since he was the "Prince" Stella had to buy whatever he desired. And Lussaria...well, he wasn't bad yet, he kept laughing at Stella as she tried to simmer everyone down since they were making such a scene.

Stella had never been more embarrassed in her life and she had witnessed Iemitsu piss drunk at parties—a very embarrassing thing to witness indeed.

Either way, they were home now and Stella didn't have to be embarrassed anymore—at least not in public.

"The Prince doesn't have to!" Bel sang, continuing towards the front double doors.

"You won't get any dinner!" warned Stella while she, Lussaria, and Levi uploaded the car.

Yep, she felt like a babysitter all right.

Suddenly, a knife whizzed past her head making her yelp. Then, she glowered at the owner of the thrown knife. "Threaten me all ya want, ya fucking spoiled brat, but you won't get dinner if you don't help." she threatened—she was used to his antics by now; she was used to all of their antics by now.

Two knives were flung in her directions, missing her—purposely--by centimeters. "Belphegor! Knock it off!"

"Ushishishi~!" he cackled. The other smirked and snickered at the sight making Stella irk even more.

And what angered even more was when the golden-haired genius trotted over, smiled that maniac smiled of his while saying, "The Prince doesn't have to, but he wants to!" At that, he started helping the others unload the car.

"_Ugh!_" Stella groaned, throwing up her hands in frustration. "You did all that just to fuck with me!"

"Pretty much."

"Bel, you're such a pain in the ass!"

"Ushishishi~!"

"I think _royal_ pain in the ass defines him better." interjected a giggling Lussaria. Levi snickered and Mammon smirked from beside him.

Stella turned her sky-blue hues—now a stormy blue tint with annoyance—to them, glaring. "You dickheads aren't helping." she grumbled. They just laughed at her more so, Bel joining causing her to become even more irritated.

Just rolling her eyes, figuring they were lost causes, the twenty-year-old just grabbed the amount of bags that she could carry and headed towards the castle. "Just c'mon. I have to start dinner before your boss has a bitch-fit."

Snickering still, those of the Varia filed into the large establishment after their maid.

The minute they entered, the roaring voice of Squalo Superbi echoed throughout the place, "VOOOOOOIIIII! STEEEELLAAAAAAAA!"

_Maybe if I pretend I didn't hear it, he'll just go away., _Stella thought, sweat dropping.

She just jerked her head to the male behind her towards the direction of the kitchen. That was before she headed there herself. Bel, Mammon, Levi, and Lussaria followed after her.

When they entered the large and well-equipped kitchen, Stella ordered her little helpers to place the food on the island counter as she did. They did as they were told. Then, since they were being so—much to her surprise and joy—obedient--sort of—she asked them if they could help her unpack the groceries and place them were they belonged while she began dinner. They did as they were told.

Inwardly, she smiled. She didn't know why, but recently, over her time living there, those of the Varia weren't giving her as much grief. Sure, they were still pains and drove the poor woman insane, but they did as asked and were actually kind of nice to her.

Well, _nice_ in their own freaky ways...

The only person who still treated her like dirt was Xanxus.

Not that she cared or anything...

"_VOOOOOOIIII!_ Stella! I know you're back, you stupid woman!" screamed Squalo's voice again, but closer that time.

Sighing deeply, Stella rolled her eyes. "In the kitchen, Squalo!" _You big, long-haired dumbass...,_ she added as she started placing hamburger meat on the pan on the stove.

Soon enough, the swordsman stomped into the kitchen. He opened his mouth to shout at Stella, but paused when he what his "teammates" were doing.

Yeah, Stella was having an interest effect on those of the Varia, including himself—though, he'd never admit it—but this was ridiculous. They were helping the girl unload groceries and putting them away! What was she doing to them?

Well, he didn't have time to deal with that, he was more concerned about the _still_ bleeding wound on his head, which was staining his silver locks and pale face.

He returned his attention to the only female in the room, who was busying herself with cooking. "Vooii! Woman!" he called.

"_What_, Squalo?"

"Get the first-aid kit! You're treating my wound!"

"What wound?" she questioned, turning around. That only resulted in her becoming paler than normal and her eyes widening slightly. Her eyes landed on the scarlet marring his temple to his chin.

"Ushishishi~! Boss using you for target practice again?" teased Bel as he put away milk.

"Shuddap, ya damn brat!" snapped Squalo. He turned to Stella again. "Stella! First-aid kit!"

She bit her lip and turned her head, acting as if she was watching the food she was cooking to make it wasn't burning. "C-Can't you get B-Bel or someone to fix you up? I-I'm kinda busy c-cooking." she stammered.

Squalo and Lussaria were the only ones who noticed the sudden change in her behavior. Well, if the others noticed, they didn't seem to care as they put food away. Squalo's brows furrowed while Lussaria frowned and busied himself with the groceries.

"The Prince doesn't want to!" Bel responded with a smirk.

"L-Levi?"

"No."

"Ma-Mammon?"

"Not unless you're paying me."

"Lussari-ria?"

Lussaria opened his mouth to agree to the request right away, but Squalo, who was becoming more and more annoyed by the second, yelled, "Forget it! I'm not having that weirdo touch me! _You're_ treating my wound, woman! Now get the fucking first-aid kit _now_!"

Making a face, Stella sighed deeply. Pathetically, she peered to Lussaria, who was looking at her worriedly. "Lussaria, can you take over th-the cooking for m-me?" the blonde pleaded feebly..

"...Sure, darling." the martial-arts specialist nodded stiffly, moving to the stove.

Thanking him softly, Stella moved towards Squalo. He glowered at her irritably, but his brows furrowed when he noticed she wasn't looking directly at him. "F-Follow me t-to the bathroom." she muttered before exiting the kitchen.

Squalo arched a brow yet, filed after her as she headed to the closest bathroom to the kitchen.

* * *

Seriously? What the hell was wrong with that girl today?

Ever since he ordered her to treat the injury Xanxus had inflicted upon him, Stella had been acting oddly. It got even worse when she started taking care of the bleeding gash. Now, her paler complexion was clammy and a little bit grin. She was gnawing harshly on her bottom lip. As well, she was swaying a bit on her fit and she was trying her hardest to clean all the blood away while not looking at it—not an easy task.

Eventually, she finished cleaning the wound and all the blood that had streamed down his face—the task taking more time needed—and started to bandage it, especially since it was still bleeding—much to her dismay.

Finally, Squalo couldn't help letting his annoyance—concern—come out, "What the hell is wrong with you, woman?"

"...N-Nothing," She swallowed hard and grabbed a bunch of gauze from the first-aid kit off the bathroom sink. Squalo was sitting on the toilet. "I-I'm fine..."

"Yeah, you really sound it." he scoffed.

"R-Really," Stella choked out. Her swaying became worse and her complexion became greener when her eyes fell on the wound on Squalo's temple. Blood was still oozing from it. "Th-There's just...just a lot of-of...bl-blood..."

Her vision started to blur before her eyes before her lids started to close. Her body started to sway backwards.

"Whoa! Hey! Stella!" Squalo jumped, quickly grabbing her before she fell and hit the hard, cold tiled floor. He caught her tiny body in her eyes and held her firmly. Frantically, he shook her. "Woman! Woman! Stella! Stella!"

Moaning softly, Stella eyes opened fully and focused after blinking a few times. Her light blue irises met Squalo's wide gray ones. She frowned deeply realizing what had happened. "I...fainted, didn't I?" she asked warily, shamefully as she stepped out of the swordsman's arms.

With creased brows, Squalo nodded. He watched her carefully in case she swooned again. "Yeah..."

"Ugh...not again." the blonde groaned, wiping her damp bangs from her face.

"_Again?_ This has happened before?"

"...Depends. Sometimes I throw up, sometimes I faint, and sometimes I have a panic attack. It depends on the amount of blood."

"Amount of blood?" questioned Squalo, sitting back down on top of the toilet. Stella was avoiding eye-contact as she leaned her back against the bathroom counter; her cheeks were flushed, but still fairly pale.

Confusion contorted his face then, a look of realization appeared. "Wait a minute," he breathed in shock. "Are you...hemophopic?"

Bitterly, she laughed, her gaze still avoiding his. "If that's what you kids are calling it these days then...yeah, that's what I am. I have hemophobia."

"But...but...that's not possible." Squalo couldn't fathom what Stella was telling him. She just didn't seem like the person to have a fear of blood. She was in the mafia, after all and she trained like mad every night before bed—he saw her practicing martial arts outside before going to bed. It was just hard to believe the little woman was _afraid_ of blood when their world was full of it.

"C'mon, Sword-boy, don't act so surprised. There's a reason why I'm just a maid and not an actual hitman, despite the fact I'm more than qualified."

"But..._how?_"

"_Look_," she said firmly with a deeply sigh. "I'd rather not talk about it. It's a _long_ story."

Squalo, narrowing his eyes, searched her face. Her expression was like stone, her eyes were glassy, and her stone was bitter. She rarely ever looked so serious; he knew not to push the matter. "Fine. Whatever." he grumbled, looking away. "...Are you okay now?" the silver-haired man asked hesitantly.

Stella smiled a little at her bashful and reluctant concern. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just gotta get some fresh air."

"That's fine. I can take care of the rest myself."

"…Grazie, Squalo."

"Whatever. Just go."

Shaking her head, but grinning a tad, Stella started out of the bathroom. However, when she got to the door, she paused making Squalo cock up a brow. "Um...Squalo?"

"What, woman?"

"Can you not...tell anyone about this? Only you and Lussaria know and I'd prefer to keep it that way."

"...Uh, yeah...sure."

"Grazie, Squalo."

"Just get out already! I don't want you fainting again!"

Chuckling, Stella rolled her eyes and exited the bathroom. Squalo watched her go until the door closed behind her. He shook his head, he was never going to understand that girl. No wonder the Boss was interested in her, she was full of surprises.

* * *

**Thanks for reading~! PLEASE REVIEW!**


	7. Target: Six

_I am sooooo sorry, everyone! I know this chapter is way over-due, but I have been so busy with preparing for an upcoming convention—cosplays, weapons, and such. And I got caught up reading the book series True Blood is based off on and also catching up in the said TV series in order to prepare for the new season. Lame excuses I know, but all true and needed to be done in my book. ^-^;; Anyway, thank you sooooooooo much for your patience and the support you all have given me; thank you sooooooo much for the reviews and such—keep it up! So I hope you enjoy this chapter!_

_**Disclaimer:**__** I do NOT own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or its characters. They are rightfully owned by Amano Akira-sensei. All I own is some situations and my OCs.**_

_**Warning**__**: For starters, this is a Xanxus/OC story; don't like, don't read. This will be following the manga—before the Ring Conflict. The story contains swearing, alcohol and drug references, mild sexual content, violence, gore, and blah, blah, blah. Anything in Japanese and/or Italian will be translated after chapter.**_

* * *

**BULLETPROOF**

**Target: Six**

The Italian coffee house, _Caffè Paradiso_**[1]**was small, but pleasant. It was out of the way, so those in the mafia wouldn't get much attention, which was very important to those in the Vongola family. Well, that and how good the coffee was brewed. Thus, making _Caffè Paradiso_ one of Sawada Iemitsu and Stella de Luca's favorite places to hang out and meet.

It had been a while since the two companions had met up there and a while since the two had seen. That being, the Ninth's External Adviser called up the young maid up on her cell phone and demanded they'd have brunch at _Caffè Paradiso. _And needing to get out of the Varia headquarters, Stella immediately agreed.

"So," Iemitsu began casually. He was majorly concerned for his female friend, but tried to keep his tone normal and slightly playful. "How's life living with the Varia, Stells?"

"First of all," she took a sip of latte. She whipped the foam off her nose and lips afterwards. "Don't call me Stells. I'm not a child." He smiled at that, thankful that she hadn't lost her personality because of those psychotic assassins. "And second, living with them is..._okay_."

"Okay?" He arched a brow. That was kind of a surprise. He figured she'd bitch and moan—not that he would blame her—about being forced to live with the Varia.

"Yeah. Okay. Just okay." the blonde female muttered with a shrug of her shoulder.

"Really?"

"Si, _why_?"

"Well, I thought you'd complaining about how crazy they were and that you hated living there." he pointed out, eating his biscati.

"...They are and I do." Stella took another sip of her beverage.

The parent's brows furrowed. "So why didn't you say that in the first place?" It was strange for Stella to not speak bluntly about how she felt. She'd never beat around the bush.

Then again, now that he thought about it. Stella had been acting strange since he had brought up the subject. He couldn't believe she hadn't noticed it before. Her shoulders were tense, her tone was softer and vaguer, and she wasn't looking him in the eye.

Suddenly, it hit him.

A look of realization crossed his scruffy face.

"No way..." Iemitsu breathed in disbelief. He then, said in scolding when the twenty-year-old woman bit down on her bottom lip nervously, "Stella de Luca! You can't possibly _like_ living with them!"

The short-haired girl flinched and made a face. "Well, I...don't _hate_ it." she mumbled, her blue eyes glued shamefully to her hot drink.

"_Stella!_"

"_What?_"

Groaning, the Japanese man fell back against his seat, running a hand through his short locks. "You can't be serious."

"They're not _that_ bad of people, Iemitsu." Stella said defensively. She sweat dropped and made a face when the mafioso gave her a look. "Okay, so they are. But they're _okay_ of guys. They don't treat me as bad as they use to."

_Minus one._

"They shouldn't have treated you badly in the first place! Mafiosi don't treat women badly!"

"Look, Iemitsu. They're not so bad once you get to know them. I mean, si, they're still assholes, but they've gotten better. I honestly don't think they're up to anything. They're just the Varia. That's all. A bunch of guys with one too many quirks."

_Does she even know what's she's saying? She can't be serious...,_ Iemitsu thought in pure disbelief. There was no way that the young woman was actually thinking those things, let alone feeling them. Stella was becoming attached to those of the Varia. He had to reason with her, to make her see clearly.

"Stells," Iemitsu began, to talk some sense into her.

However, suddenly, her cell phone went off in her jeans' pocket.

"Hold that thought," Stella said, holding up her index finger.

The tiny, pale girl fished for her phone and yanked it out. Iemitsu raised a brow when she scowled upon who the Caller ID was. Stella flipped opened the contraption and placed it to her ear. "_What_, Squalo? I'm with a friend. This better be fuckin' good."

Iemitsu couldn't tear his attention away from the girl as she chatted with none other than Squalo Superbi on the phone.

Sure, that seemed like a harmless thing, but Stella was talking to someone of the Varia. And she was talking to someone of the Varia so casually as if they were...friends. Yes, being friends with Stella wasn't very conventional—Iemitsu knew better than anyone since he was her friend—but she being companions with someone in the Varia was completely strange. And not right. There was_ nothing_ okay with that.

_Stella really is becoming attached to them..._

"Iemitsu? Iemitsu! DUDE!" Stella annoyed voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

"Uh, si?" He blinked stupidly.

She gave him a look. "I said I have to go. Apparently that alcoholic asshole, Xanxus is sick and his so-called "loyal" subordinates are too fuckin' lazy to take care of him, so I have to." she said in exasperation.

"O-Oh." Iemitsu responded, a bit taken aback.

"Ci dispiace, amico**[2]**." she sighed deeply, rising to her booted feet. Fishing through her purse, she pulled out her wallet and pulled out some money to place on the table. "I gotta go. I'll call you, Iemitsu. We have to do this again."

"Si. Of course, Stells." he nodded, disappointed that she had to leave so early. "Arrivederci. Si riguardi."

"Will do. You do so as well." The female nodded back.

And with that, she whipped around and jogged out. The Asian with a deep frown watched her go. He sighed deeply and shook his head.

_Nono, what have you gotten that poor girl into?_

* * *

"All right, all right, Shark-Boy," Stella said aloud with a deep, frustrated sigh when she entered the Varia mansion. She dumped her bag at the door and hung up her coat. "I'm here."

"'Bout fuckin' time, you damn woman." Squalo retorted, crossing his arms. He rose from his place on the long staircase.

Her azure orbs glared at the silverette. "Don't be such a dick. Xanxus can't be _that_ sick." She brushed her flaxen bangs from her face.

"Oh, but he is." came Belphegor's voice as he descended the stairs.

Stella's thins eyebrows furrowed. She looked from the other blonde to the swordsman in front of her. For some reason or another, she actually felt a pang of concern well in her chest. "...What's wrong with him?"

Squalo shot Bel a glower for worrying the girl, but Bel just smiled that creepy smiled of his. _Damn brat. _Squalo shook his head causing his long tresses to sway about his slim frame and he turned back to a frowning Stella. "Relax, Blondie. It's nothing serious. The Boss just woke up with a high fever and since he drank _a lot_ of vodka last night, he has a bad hangover on top of that." he explained.

She threw up her hands. "Of course! God forbid that jackass wouldn't drink for one night."

Bel and Squalo just shrugged. Stella rolled her eyes. "So what do you need me for if its just a fever? You guys can take care of something as simple as that."

"You have medical training, don't you?" Bel inquired.

"Si, but I don't see-"

"Well, none of us do, so we don't know how to care for the Boss." claimed Squalo, sweat dropping a bit—he couldn't believe he had let Lussaria and Bel convinced him to do this.

Stella deadpanned. _Does he honestly think I'm going to believe that? _"You guys are so full of shit." she scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

The swordsman just scowled and the knife-specialist just snickered.

The maid inwardly groaned. "Fine. Whatever. I have no idea what you two are up to, but, frankly, I don't give two shits. I'll take care of him." she sighed, starting towards the stairs. The men parted to let her through.

As she passed, with an evident scowl, Stella couldn't help but think, _Men are so incredibly useless._

* * *

Ultimately, reaching Xanxus' door, Stella didn't even bother knocking, she just strolled inside.

Upon seeing the sight before her, the girl couldn't help feeling a bit sorry—something she thought she'd associate Xanxus with.

The Varia Boss was lying in his large bed with his covers pulled all the way up to his neck. His breath was coming out raggedly, his face was flushed, and he looked clammy. His hair was messier than usual and his scowl was worse than usual. He looked so pathetic and so very sick. And since he looked like he was in such agony—though he trying to keep his usual tough exterior—he must've not got sick often.

Hangovers...probably a lot.

"Wh-Who...the fuck is th-there...?" came Xanxus' gruff and fairly feeble call.

"It's Stella." she announced, approaching his bed.

"Wha-What do you want..tr-trash?"

"Well, since your _dedicated_ followers are such dickheads, they left me to take care of you."

The dark-haired man scoffed, causing him to cough. He glowered at her with his blood red spheres through partially lidded eyes. "I-I don't...I don't n-need to-to be taken...cared...of...so get th-the fuck out..."

"Oh?" Stella arched a brow, her hands firmly on her hips. "Okay. Fine. If you can sit up and get out of this bed, I'll leave you alone." she challenged.

_**This**__ should be good.,_ she thought, inwardly smirking.

"D-Don't be...be ridiculous...j-just get out..." Xanxus rolled onto his side, wincing a little. All the noise was making his headache feel worse; he thought his skull was cracking open. And the fact that he felt extremely overheated, didn't make him feel even better.

"What? Can't the big, mean, and scary Varia Boss sit up?" teased the maid in a baby voice.

His eye twitched. How _dare_ she mock him? Did she have a death wish? He may have been sick, but he could do such a simple task as sitting up and getting out of bed. He was going to show her.

Pushing his blankets off feebly, Xanxus shifted his arms—them being shaky—and started to push himself up. However, the inky-haired male felt so drained, achy, and lightheaded that he could barely do so. After the fourth attempt, if you could really call it that when you barely move, the assassin gave up and collapsed back against his numerous pillows.

He glowered venomously when he saw Stella smirk. _Fuckin' bitch..._, he thought furiously, rolling onto his side, so his back was turned to that said "bitch". His annoyance just grew when he felt the short-haired female pull his covers back over his body, tucking him in.

Oh, yes, Xanxus was going to kill her. First, she mocked him. Now, she was babying him. She was going to pay when he regained his full strength.

"Now, that that's settled," the twenty-year-old began, standing straight. "Is there anything I can get you, Xanxus, that might make you more comfortable?"

"...Get me some-something t-to drink." he ordered tiredly.

"What would you like?"

"W-Whisky."

Stella made a face. "Forget it." she responded immediately.

"Ex-Excuse me, trash?" he growled, glaring at her over his shoulder.

"I said _forget it_. You have a fever and a hangover. Aren't you sick enough? Alcohol is going to make your condition worse. So none for you."

"Why you lil-! D-Do as I...as I say or-or I'll-"

"You'll _what_, Xanxus? You don't even have the strength get out of your damn bed. Your threats are empty."

The tanned male scowled and growled, but didn't fight. His head was throbbing and his body was over-heated, he didn't have the strength to do so. He just snorted indignantly and laid his head back down, closing his red-hued optics. "Wa-Water. And something...something t-to get rid of th-this...this fuckin' pain."

Stella grinned a little. "Now, _that_ I will do."

With that, she turned on her heel and exited the room.

* * *

With an exhausted huff, Stella collapsed on one of the high chairs at the kitchen island counter. Lussaria smirked a tad at the sight of his fatigued, small friend across from him. She had been working all day to get Xanxus feeling better or at least get his fever down. And since he was an incredibly stubborn man, he wasn't making Stella's job any easier.

Any normal person would've given up and let the Varia boss take care of himself. The other members rarely got sick and when they did, they were left to care for themselves. They were loyal to Xanxus, but there was no way in hell they were going to babysit him. Besides, they had a maid now. A maid that they knew had a soft spot for the scarred male, so why not have her take care of him?

"So how's taking care of the Boss going, cupcake?" Lussaria asked, folding his hands on the tiled table top.

Lifting her head as it had been lolled back lazily on the back of her chair, the girl's blue eyes narrowed and she glowered at him. "Don't act coy with me, ass-face. I know you, Bel, and Squalo somehow set me up to babysit your Boss' sick ass."

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Stella." sang the martial-arts specialist.

"Uh huh." she scoffed and slouched in her chair again. "You guys are dickheads, just throwing it out there."

Lussaria chuckled. "Oh, come on. Like you don't enjoy babying Boss."

Stella deadpanned. "What shit are you spouting now?"

"I know for a fact that you have a soft spot for him." he teased, waggling his index finger at her.

Stiffening, her cheeks became flushed making his smirk grow. She glared. "Don't be stupid, Lussaria. I harbor no affections for that man." she scoffed, turning her head away.

"_Riiiiiiiight_. Just like you don't like any of us Varia members, right, darling?"

"I _don't_ like any of you."

"Come on, Stella-baby. Who are you trying to fool me or yourself, Stells?"

Not even bothering to reply, Stella huffed, slid off the chair, stumbling a bit when her feet didn't touch the ground suddenly—it was higher than she first thought—and strolled off. "Don't call me Stells. I'm not a child." she mumbled under her breath, leaving the kitchen.

Lussaria just watched her go with a big, knowing grin on his face.

* * *

When Stella entered Xanxus' room, she was surprised to hear the water running from within his bathroom.

_Guess, he gathered enough strength to take a shower., _she thought, smiling a little, glad that he was feeling better.

However, she frowned a little when she saw the clothes he had been previously wearing scattered all across the carpeted floor. _Pig., _she snorted, her hands on her hips. Shaking her head with a deep sigh, she bent down to gather the articles of clothing.

They were damp with sweat making me contort her face in disgust. She dumped them in the hamper that she had made Xanxus keep in his room—not the easiest task in the world. After, Stella went to the man's drawers and fished for some fresh clothes—she became a flustered when she had to retrieve a pair of boxers.

Hesitantly, Stella made her way to the bathroom with the clothes in her arms and opened the door. She ignored the blush on her cheeks when she realized she could see Xanxus' outline through the shower curtain and placed the clothes on top of the sweaty toilet seat—he was taking a hot shower. Then, as quickly as she could, she started out of the bathroom.

Except just as her hand touched the doorknob, the water shut off. She went rigid and her sapphire sphere widened.

She heard, big, wet feet wetly hit the floor after the curtain was pulled open.

"Trash...? Wha-What are you doing...doing in here?" grunted Xanxus, his voice still sounding fatigued and shaky.

Frantically, Stella turned around to repeatedly apologize, but stopped when she realized the stupid mistake she had made in doing so.

Or was it?

Xanxus' body was marred by numerous scars to match those on his face. However, much to her surprise, she thought those scars, like those on his face, enhanced his good, rugged looks. His complexion was tan, bringing out his vermillion eyes, which couldn't be hidden by his now flatten dark hair—because of his cleansing. The man was incredibly built. Broad shoulders, strong arms, and hard abs and chest. And his...

_No! Do not think of __**that**_, Stella shut her eyes and looked away.

She had seen men naked before, but Xanxus was just so..._well-built_. Her entire face was hot and not just because of the steam from the hot water. Mentally, she scolded herself over and over for thinking such things about Xanxus and his...body.

Even through his blurred gaze because of his illness, Xanxus could see Stella's reaction to him. It amused him. The little brat was a lot more innocent than she played off and not to mention, he had now had something against. And oh, boy was he going to use it against her after the way she mocked him earlier.

He approached her staggering a little, his vision blurring further. Inwardly, the assassin scowled and groaned. Maybe taking a hot shower when he was already hot wasn't the best idea, but he had felt so sweaty and weak just staying in bed all day.

Xanxus shook his head and continued towards the girl, who kept muttering meek apologizes with her head turned away and her eyes clenched shut. "See something...you like, woman?" he mocked with a cocky smirk.

"Wha-What?" she shrieked, her face becoming even redder—if that was possible. She bit her lip and kept her eyes at his face, glowering. "Don't be ridiculous!"

The inky-haired twenty-something-year-old smirked even more so yet, could say nothing else as his fever got the best of him. He grunted and fell forward, his eyes fluttering closed. Stella, her anger fading quickly, jumped and quickly caught the unconscious mafioso. The flaxen-haired woman staggered quite a bit surprised by the sudden weight of Xanxus. She grunted and tried to keep her balance; he was a lot heavier than he looked.

She scowled, sweat dropping looking down at his face. "Are you...f-fucking serious? He f-fucking f-fainted? Ugh! U-Useless man! First, he insults...in-insults me th-then, faints. What th-the...hell?" she grumbled exasperatedly, her voice a bit strained from the weight.

Suddenly, her already flushed face became even more so as her scowl deepened. "Oh, great. Fan-bloody-tastic...I-I have t-to dry him off...g-get him dressed...and...ugh...and p-put him back t-to bed...Ugh! F-Fuck m-my life...I-I don't get...get paid enough for this shit..." she groaned, shifting the man in her arms more comfortably, trying to ignore the pleasant way his heated skin felt against her—he was soaking her clothes. She felt grateful that she trained so much or she would've been on the ground beneath Xanxus already—something she did not need.

* * *

Somehow or another, with much difficulty, Stella had managed to dry off the mafia boss, get him dressed, and into bed—all the while keeping her eyes from looking at certain things.

With a deep sigh tiredly, Stella pulled the blankets of Xanxus' large bed over him, so they were tucked underneath his chin. She straightened and placed her hands on her hips. Her light gaze peered down at him.

_He looks so peaceful..._

Xanxus truly did.

It was such a dramatic change to how he looked when he was awake. His face was always contorted in anger or annoyance or was mocking or was cocky. In Stella's opinion his negative expressions marred his face more than his scars did. On the other hand, now, his face was smooth and at ease. His brows weren't furrowed, his mouth was loose, and his jaw wasn't set. He actually looked younger, more...innocent—a word Stella or anyone with a will to live would use for such a man.

Uncontrollably, Stella reached down and brushed his black bangs from his face—he looked more handsome with his hair down. A small, soft smile tugged on her cherry lips and she sat on the edge of his bed.

"You know, Xanxus, you look so much nicer like this. It almost makes me forget how much of an ass you are." she said softly, stroking his tresses. He just snored softly in response making her smile grow. "Actually, you wanna hear a secret? I actually don't mind you. You're really not all that bad. I think you're just kind of lonely and sad, that's why you're so hateful and mean." Her smile became solemn. "I guess I can understand that. Underneath, I'm the same I suppose." She let out a hollow laugh. "Maybe that's why I can be such a bitch. We're more alike than I thought, y'know?" The pale girl's smile became sincere again. "Guess, that's why you're growing on me. Guess that's why all your subordinates are growing on me. Maybe I'm crazy. Maybe I'm an idiot, but honestly, I like you guys. I like living here. I feel like...I actually belong here."

Again, her reply was a soft snore. She grinned tenderly. For a while after that, the young woman just sat beside Xanxus, watching him sleep, stroking his hair.

Little did she know, three pairs of curious eyes were watching the entire thing through a crack in the door.

* * *

**1. Caffè Paradiso****—**_**Café Paradise**_

**2. Ci dispiace, amico****—**_**My apologies, friend.**_

**_Thanks so much for reading! Please review! ^0^_**


	8. Target: Seven

_Sorry for the wait, guys, but here's chapter seven! Thank you to all those who have supported me so far-so appreciate it! Hope you enjoy this chapter! Please REVIEW~!_

_**Disclaimer:**__** Same old thing.**_

_**Warning:**__** Same old thing.**_

* * *

**BULLETPROOF**

**Target: Seven**

"Well, your two's plans officially suck fucking ass." scoffed the long silver-haired perched on a bar-stool at the kitchen's island counter. His grayish eyes were glaring idly at a certain blonde prince and flamboyant grinned-haired fellow.

"Ushishsishishi~!" cackled the prince, sitting across from the swordsman at the counter. "Our plan didn't fail."

"Oh? I'd like to see evidence of that." retorted the "shark", crossing his arms.

"But, Squa, you did, darling." the green-haired fellow at the stove pointed out with a big grin.

Squalo irked. "Voooii! Don't call me such idiotic things! And I saw nothing!" he snapped.

"Then, you're blind. Ushishishi~!" snickered Bel.

"Shut your goddamn mouth, ya damn brat!"

"Ushishishsi~! Make me!"

"Now, now, you two. There's no need to fight." giggled Lussuria. "And Squalo, like I said, you did see evidence that our dear little Stella has taken a liking to our Boss. And us, but him more so."

"Fine, fine, whatever, but she didn't say it to him." argued Squalo with a huff.

"She didn't have to. Unless that was your original intention." Mammon stated dully, hopping onto the counter to join the conversation.

"No, no, no. We just wanted to confirm that Stells likes the Boss first." Lussuria admitted with a smile. "Now," he waved a spatula around; he was helping Stella out by cooking breakfast that morning. "It's time to put Phase Two into motion." He turned to Belphegor. "Right, Bel?"

"Of course. Ushishishi~!" the young man concurred, smirking that smirk of his.

"And Phase Two would be?" droned Squalo, sweat dropping.

He had a bad feeling about this...

"To confirm that our dear Boss likes our cute little maid back, of course!" Lussuria exclaimed happily.

Levi snorted in disgust. "Boss wouldn't degrade himself for such a thing."

The others just rolled their eyes; they respected and were loyal to Xanxus, but they weren't obsessed like _someone. _

"_Anyway_," Squalo glanced to Bel and Lussaria. "How exactly do you two plan to put this plan into motion?"

The two smirked. "Well, you see..." Lussuria began.

* * *

Kicking the door open roughly with an aggravated huff, Stella stomped into the Varia Castle. She threw off her hood and beanie to shake out her boyishly-cut locks, shrugged off her heavy jacket, yanked off her gloves, and kicked off her boots. The floor of the foyer soon became covered by snow followed by puddles of water after the said snow melted.

"Fuck this weather, fuck snow, and fuck Xanxus for making me shovel this shit!" she grumbled irritably through chattering teeth. She wrapped her arms around her small frame as she was shivering. It was freezing and snowing outside and Stella had been order by Xanxus—who was unfortunately all better—had demanded that she shovel the driveway—the _long_ driveway.

"Damn bastard...should've told him to fuck off..." the young woman huffed. She started towards the kitchen; maybe a cup of hot chocolate would warm her up and help her mood—Lussuria made amazing hot chocolate.

Sadly, for her, that plan flew out the window when the other blonde of the household called out to her, "Principessa~!**[1]**"

For some reason or another, Bel started calling her that.

Inwardly groaning, rolling her baby blues, Stella stopped in the middle of the doorway to the kitchen. Lazily, she turned to see the knife-thrower descending the staircase of the foyer. "Si, Bel?" she questioned dully.

"The Principessa's face is all red. Do I make you flustered?" he smirked mischievously, approaching her.

Deadpanning, the shorter blonde scoffed. "Ch. You wish. I was outside shoveling in ass-rapingly cold weather because of your fucktard of a boss." she admitted exasperatedly with her fists on her hips.

"Ushishishi~! Well, such things is what a contadina**[2] **does." Bel pointed out.

"One minute I'm a principessa then, the next, I'm a contadino. I don't think social classes work like that." Stella said, sweat dropping.

"You are whatever I want you to be, principessa, because I am the principe**[3]**."

"...You're a lunatic."

"Ushishishi~!"

Just rolling her eyes, Stella shook her head. She got to the point. "_Anyway,_ did you need something, Bel?"

"Si. We are going shopping."

"...I beg your pardon?"

"We. Are. Going. Shopping."

Stella irked at his tone. "No, you shithead. I got that part. I meant, _why_? Are we out of something? Did you and Shark-Boy break something, what?"

"Ushishishi~! Nope! Just want to go shopping!" Bel smiled.

"Forget it." she retorted, turning around to head into the kitchen. "Ask someone else. I got better things to do."

Bel wasn't going to take for an answer though—shocker! Snickering, he shot out his hand and grabbed hold of Stella elbows, causing her to stop walking. She glowered back at him for touching her, but mostly because since he was stronger, she couldn't struggle out of his grip.

"The principe wants to go shopping with the principessa and that is what will happen." the young man said, his tone warning, but that creepy smirk on his face.

Stella eyes narrowed. She couldn't argue anymore. His tone was far too threatening. Sure, she could deal with his knives and other things with no intention of hurting her. However, if he wanted to hurt her, he would—all of them would. Sure, she trained hard every day, but they were far stronger and had more experience; there was no way in Hell that she could take one of them on alone.

Thus, with a deep sigh of frustration and scowl, the maid gave in to the prince's wishes. "Fine. We'll go shopping." she said, twitching as his growing, eerie smirk. "But can I grab a cup of hot chocolate and take a hot shower before going?"

"Ushishishi~! A principessa must pamper herself!" He released her and spun on his heel to leave—to do whatever, Stella didn't care. "But best be quick! I do not like waiting! You will have to be punished if I have to wait too long!" he added.

Stella deadpanned. "Si, si, si." Then, with a shake of her head, she turned and headed into the kitchen.

_Fuck my life..._

* * *

Stella's mouth hung open at the sight of the Italian mall she and her "companion" had entered to go shopping—as he had demanded.

The colors red, green, and white covered the bustling place. Tinsel was hung here there. There was Christmas trees dressed in various items such as ornaments, stars, fake and empty presents, and etc. A fat, jolly man adorned in red and white fluff sat in the center near a giant tree with children surrounding him. Snowmen of fake snow were here and there. Plastic dear and elves were placed in the same fashion. And jolly music echoed throughout the large establishment.

"Ushishishi~! The principessa looks shocked." pointed out the male blonde from beside her.

"Is it almost Christmas already?" breathed Stella after finding her voice.

"Clearly. It's December. How could you not notice?"

"Well, _excuse me._ I guess I've been too busy with your peoples' bitch work to notice."

"Ushishishi~!"

Just ignoring his cackle, Stella allowed her bright eyes to glance around once again.

She just couldn't believe it. It was almost Christmas, it was December. She had lived with the Varia for nearly a month and a half. It was sort of hard for her to comprehend. She wasn't sure if she wasn't happy or not that she had lived with that all that long? It had almost seemed like she had been with them longer. Then again, if she really thought about it, it didn't really and if it had, the Ninth would be very disappointed in her; living with the Varia for so long and had discovered nothing towards whether they were up to something or not.

Either way, Stella de Luca wasn't sure how to feel about all this. Happy, anger, confusion, what?

Her thoughts broke when she now realized why Bel wanted to go shopping so badly.

"Bel," she turned and looked up to him with her brows furrowed. "Is this why you wanted to go shopping so badly? You wanted to get decorations for the mansion?"

"Ushishishi~! Aren't you a smart, little contadina!" he teased, patting the top of her head.

Scowling, cheeks pink from being treated like a child, she swatted his hand away. "Don't treat me like a child or call me little!" she snapped—her height was a sensitive issue. "I'm fun-size..." she grumbled. "And anyway, don't we have decorations in the attic?"

"Nope!" Bel replied, starting to stroll towards an escalator. "Normally, we don't celebrate Christmas!"

Puzzlement crossed her pale face before following the assassin. "Seriously? Why?" She joined him on the rising staircase.

"The Boss doesn't like to celebrate it. And thus, Levi won't celebrate it. And Squalo doesn't celebrate it really either. Though, if we did celebrate it, he would go along with it."

"That's silly."

Then again, was she really one to talk? She didn't really like celebrating the festive holiday either. On the other hand, she still bought presents for those closest to her—she didn't have to spend a lot—and she went to the Vongola holiday parties.

Bel shrugged. "Boss, doesn't like many things."

Stella let out a snort through her nose. "Tell me something I don't know."

The two laughed a bit at their small—sort of—joke.

The fair-haired female crossed her arms as they continued to ride the escalator. "So if you guys don't ever celebrate, why the sudden change this year?" she inquired curiously.

"You."

Stella blinked.

"...I beg your pardon?"

"We want to celebrate this year because of you, principessa."

"...Wh-Why?" Was she blushing? Why would they want to celebrate because of her?

"Why not?"

"That's not an answer, Bel."

"Ushishishishi~!"

"Besides," she began stepping onto the tiled floor, getting off the escalator. "How are you going to explain us celebrating Christmas to Xanxus if he's the reason you haven't celebrated in the past?"

"Ushishishi~! Oh, trust me, he'll celebrate it this year!" Bel guffawed, grabbing Stella's wrist and heading to the first store.

Sweat dropping, Stella made a face, allowing herself to be dragged. _Sure. If we buy __**a lot**__ of alcohol..._

* * *

After buying a cornucopia of Christmas decorations (Mammon wasn't going to be happy), Bel went off saying he had things to buy—he wouldn't indulge while that weird laugh of his. Taking the rare moment of being alone, Stella decided she'd search and maybe buy some presents for the boys—yeah, she was shocked by that decision too.

So far, she had purchased Levi, Lussuria, and Mammon gifts. And as she was moving through an antique store in search of something for Bel—something that screamed royalty—Stella stopped when she heard classical music echoing through the cluttered store.

Her ears perked as the tune was familiar.

Following the noise, almost as if she was in a trance, Stella's booted feet carried her to the aisle where the music was coming from.

A person was in the aisle, playing with whatever was causing the music. Stella couldn't see whatever it was, so she continued to walk towards the person and the item. Fortunately, someone called the person's name and they left permitting Stella full access to the source of the haunting, but beautiful melody.

It was coming from a music box. An antique music box.

The base of it was a well-polished mahogany wood with golden outlining and golden intricate designs etched into the sides and top. The inside was lined in red velvet that looked a little old yet, was in good condition. A mirror was glue to the inner top of the box. And in the center, on a steady, spinning platform was two figures. One was man with black hair and dressed in a fine tux. The other was a woman with wavy blonde hair adorned in a pretty red gown. They were in a lover's embrace and looked like they were dancing as they spun, dancing to the music the box played because it was open.

Sadness began to well in the young woman's chest as a solemn smile was on her face. Her blue eyes became glassy, but she swallowed hard, fighting the urge to shed even a single tear in the store—not that she'd cry anywhere where there was people.

"Guess I'm going to have to visit them soon. Mamma, Papa, Sorella**[4]**, and Fratello**[5]**." she muttered softly to herself, still staring at the plastic dancers.

Sighing deeply, she shook her head, causing her long bangs to swish about her face. She was being silly, acting like this. However, Stella couldn't help having a heavy swarm of emotions wash over her every time she looked at the music box, especially the dancers. She felt deep sadness, anger, and happiness. Emotions that she hadn't felt in a long time—at least not a lot.

Stella picked up the box and proceeded down the aisle to continue on her search for something for Bel.

* * *

**1. Principessa****—Princess**

**2. C****ontadin****a****—Peasant **

**3. P****rincipe****—Prince **

**4. Sorella****—Sister **

**5. Fratello****-Brother**

**Thanks for reading~! Please REVIEW!**


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